Talking figures were a big deal in the early 90s. Not only did the Joes venture into this territory, but the knock-off market did as well. Toymax’s M-PACT line was heavy presence on toy shelves at stores like K-Mart and other discount retailers. Over the years, I’ve come across the figures’ accessories in random Joe lots, but hadn’t found any
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By KansasBrawler If there’s one thing I’ve always appreciated about the Joe brand, it was the team’s diversity. America’s highly-trained special missions group has traditionally been almost as diverse as the country itself. More importantly, those characters were fleshed out in a way that made their race a secondary thing. It’s not like Stalker and Airborne were tokens on the
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Going back to the 25th anniversary well, Airborne was another figure I really wanted to see recreated for the new line. What we got was not without flaws, but a good looking if not entirely playable figure. If you’re into revisions that look good on a shelf and are able to achieve a few decent poses, it’s a figure for
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While the internet is a wonderful tool and an amazing resource, there’s something about holding a book in one’s hands that can’t be fully replicate online. As a toy collector, I like to flip through pages and gaze at printed photos as much as I like to swipe and scroll on a screen. As such, I like to have toy
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I just can’t decide which Dino Hunter figure is cooler–Low-Light or Ambush. I have an automatic preference for Low-Light, since he’s a childhood favorite character, and Ambush wasn’t released until after I was out of playing with Joes. However, Ambush is a unique-looking dude, and I absolutely love his accessories. The only problem with the DH version though is that
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A year before large scale Joe returned to regular retail with a newly designed highly-articulated body, Target offered up a series of Hall of Fame based interpretations of World War II officers. I had to make a trek to Wichita in order to pick up the set, as my area didn’t get a Target store until the 2000s. At the
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By KansasBrawler Battle Force 2000 is a bit of a strange subteam for me. It was another one that KansasBrother and I only had one figure each from growing up, but it never really captured my attention all that much as an adult. However, having a brother who’s your partner in Joe crime is a bit of an interesting thing
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The original Alley Viper figure was an unknown to me until I came back to collecting in the early 90s. The concept instantly hooked me, and the color scheme and helmet design were extra touches of oddness that drew me to the trooper. When the Battle Corps versions hit, I was able to build a squad of the yellow and
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By KansasBrawler As a kid, I was always more about the figures than the vehicles for the most part and that trend has continued through to the modern stuff. The vehicles just require a bit more space to display, and that’s something that’s still somewhat at a premium. I have gotten a lot of modern Alpha and Bravo class vehicles
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It’s not often that we bring up Big Questions around here. So on the occasion of Nice Pants Week 2017, we ask one about one of the oldest GI Joe figures. Why did sailors at one time wear bell bottoms? I thought I knew the answer thanks to a relative who served, but after scouting online sources, it turns out
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